Inspiration | Will Shawarma be the next big thing in food?
We spotted Choco Kebab some years back but the last couple of weeks we got a couple of Facebook posts about this sweet version of shawarma. We also spotted a DIY shawarma in New York City and most recently a vegan shawarma that’s being served at Noma in Copenhagen. Here in the Netherlands we love a great shawarma joint, especially if they serve it with lamb meat. But we never spotted a vegan version before, some inspiration in this article!
Vegan Shawarma
In this article at the website of Fine Dining Lovers they wrote about the vegan shawarma. They subscribe it as one of the most fascinating dishes to come out of the latest season at Copenhagen’s newly reopened restaurant Noma. They serve shawarma made of celeriac, truffles and umami-packed fungi. The shawarma tower is then cooked on a bbq, with apples spiked at the top so that the juice runs down onto the ‘meat’. At this season the menu at Noma is dedicated entirely to plants, with just a vegetarian or full vegan menu on offer. We love to hear from those who do serve their own vegan version of shawarma! We know that the ‘Vegan Junk Food Bar’ in Amsterdam does!
Do It Yourself Shawarma
In week 26 we wrote about the Lebanese restaurant Au Za’atar in New York City in our ‘trends we spotted this week’. Here they serve a DIY Shawarma; a personal shawarma machine will be put on your table, with vegetables, herbs, pita bread, fries and sauces. It’s sold as a friends- and family style dinner!
Au Za’atar is a Lebanese / Middle Eastern restaurant which has quickly become a destination in the East Village for New Yorker’s and tourists alike, serving family recipes from Lebanon and other Middle Eastern countries. It’s the original tableside shawarma restaurant in the USA. Check out how they make the DIY shawarma here:
Salmon Shawarma, Kebab or Döner
Also spotted back in 2015: the so called ‘Lachdöner’ from Rauch Zeichen consists of juicy salmon, cucumber, tomato, crispy fresh onion, well-seasoned with homemade honey-mustard-dill sauce and conveniently packed in traditional flatbread. It’s created by the self-made entrepreneur and amateur fisherman Ronny Unger which serves it from his food truck in and around Berlin.
Sweet Shawarma
Although it’s being sold already for some years now, somehow we spotted a couple Facebook posts of the chocolate shawarma version. It’s for example being sold at The Choco Kebab House and Flavours Gelato in London, but we spotted it also at different places in Amsterdam, Berlin and the Middle East. Check out the website of Choco Kebab in the Netherlands. But we could imagen a fruit version as well with fruits like apple, pear or Jack fruit…. Check out how it works in this video:
Luxury versions of Shawarma
Back in 2015 we wrote an article about the ‘kebabs quasi gastronomiques’ of restaurant Grillé in Paris. Even the biggest snob couldn’t wait to be in line for this doner kebab! Whilst in line you could see the pita’s being freshly baked in the corner, after which it would be filled with fresh meats from Desnoyer, one of the most well-known quality butchers in Paris, fresh herbs galore and two types of freshly made sauces. And this January we wrote about chef Chris Naylor of Michelin star restaurant Vermeer in Amsterdam who had a pop-up restaurant: Döner Vermeer. He served his version of an ultimate Döner kebab, guests could choose between, chicken, veal or lamb with homemade bread and grilled and pickles veggies.
